During the past few months we've been
feeling slightly restless, wishing we could afford to drive to
Tennessee, where Daniel continues working on his mission pilot
flight training.

But with high fuel prices, that was not an option for us. Then
to our delight, thanks to Southwest Airlines' $89 Ding special
fares, and my sister Linda's generosity, we actually got to go!

Accustomed to traveling in our full-size handicap
van, squeezing the trip essentials into 4 large suitcases and 3
smaller carry-ons,
was quite a challenge!

Our
flight took us from Sacramento, CA to Nashville, TN.

This was our first commercial airline flight since
1990, when we flew to Indianapolis for the General Conference
session. Daniel was 5 years old back then; now he's 22!

Along much of the way I recognized a variety of
landmarks, including some dirt roads in the hot dry Arizona hills
we'd explored between Globe and Apache Junction years ago.
That's where the van air conditioner broke down in 100+ degree
temperatures, but I'd had Diana adjust
some wires, she fixed it and we survived!

Upon arriving in Nashvile, our son
Daniel and his
very special friend
Emily Caza met us. With much effort
and after totally dismantling my wheelchair, Daniel squeezed everything
into the car for our 150 mile drive to Collegedale, near
Chattanooga.

David & Marilyn Russell of nearby Apison kindly
allowed us to stay in their wheelchair accessible downstairs apartment, which included a
bathroom and kitchen. The Honda Accord was loaned to us by
David Gates' organization,
Gospel Ministries International (GMI). It was a real blessing!

Our trees at home were loaded with persimmons, so
Diana carefully layered about 20 pounds of them in our suitcases,
along with some pomegranates from our bush.

Surprisingly, most arrived without too many bruises,
and we had enough to share with Daniel, Emily and some friends as
well.

Daniel had been staying with some friends, but
decided to move in with us so he could see us more often. His
life is a whirlwind of activity, so he was away much of the time.
But he worked us into his schedule and took us places as needed.

He's changed a lot since we saw him last January.
More focused, mature, responsible, organized, and still on fire for
God, he continues promoting mission service.

He even helped with the cooking and cleanup - when he
had time!

Here he's fixing
pancakes for our breakfast.

My mom made and sent with us a gluten turkey with
stuffing - an Adams family tradition since the 1920's when a group
of ladies from Angwin, CA decided to create a vegetarian alternative
for holiday turkey. Daniel especially enjoyed it - he hadn't
had any for several years.

Emily joined us for meals whenever she could get a break from
school.

A sophomore at
Southern Adventist University, Emily
studies Nursing. She hopes to serve in the mission field,
following the example of her sister and hero Shannon Sorensen, who
serves in Thailand with her husband Chris through Adventist Frontier
Missions.

Emily spent several
evenings studying at our apartment. Like Daniel, she's able to
multi-task, somehow absorbing her bookwork while joining our
conversations, commenting on video clips we were watching and
keeping up on anything else going on at the moment.

Emily really enjoys English, and she's an excellent
writer. One of her jobs at college includes correcting essays.
She also works at the cafeteria.

When her schoolwork was done (or at times when she
just felt like procrastinating!), she and Daniel played recorders,
we talked, looked at pictures, and just spent time getting to know
each other.

Emily is creative,
disciplined, intelligent, focused, responsible, thrifty, thinks for
herself, is thoughtful of others and loves God. She's also
playful, mischievous, has a sense of humor, is high energy and
thrives on high-adrenaline adventure activities.

When other missionaries needed to use the GMI car,
Emily gladly allowed us to use her 1982 Toyota Corolla. It's
smaller and seriously underpowered, but it gets her around.
(Besides, she and Daniel, as most of the rest of us, like to drive fast, and with this car, she's less
likely to do so!)

By taking my wheelchair
apart and putting it in the trunk, we managed to get around OK.

We got exercise on warmer days by hiking along the
Greenway, a nice concrete walkway about 2 miles long. It
follows the creek near SAU, and folks use it to walk, jog, go
rollerblading, ride bikes, and enjoy the beauties of nature.

The
Collegedale Airport is home base for GMI's
mission pilot training plane, a Cessna 150. Daniel has logged
about 180 flying hours so far, and is close to getting his
Instrument rating. He can use the plane for the price of gas
plus a small fee to cover airplane maintenance. Instructors
charge a minimal amount as well.

Daniel got his pilot's license in December of 2005,
and neither Diana nor I had flown with him yet. After 2 years,
I got my chance at last!

After doing the pre-flight inspection, Daniel and
Diana struggled to lift, maneuver, bend and eventually squeeze me
into the small two-seat cockpit. After a prayer for safety, we
soared up into the skies - what a thrill to fly with my son! I
had a blast as he did a few Dutch rolls, stalls, canyon turns and
the really cool zero-gravity part, where for a few seconds we were
weightless, my legs floated up, and so did other things that weren't
fastened down. What an awesome treat! We flew for about
an hour - not nearly long enough - looking at ridges & lakes,
enjoying the sunset, and doing touch & go landings. Twice he
cut power from 'way up, then glided in to the runway. Daniel
is careful and very good pilot.